


quiet dreams you keep to yourself

by philindas



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-16
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2019-02-15 10:41:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13029330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/philindas/pseuds/philindas
Summary: It seems so strange- to see new life, out here in space; in the future.But they all watch as the infant squirms, limbs flailing in the plastic incubator- after a moment, though, the child’s face scrunches up, and cries begin to issue from its tiny mouth. All three of them pause, and it takes only a moment for Melinda to assess that Deke knows absolutely nothing about children, and that Phil is too stunned to properly react.





	quiet dreams you keep to yourself

**Author's Note:**

> This is the MOST self-indulgent fic in the ENTIRE WORLD but they gave me Phil and Melinda and a baby but they didn't have either of them HOLD the baby so. This is just fixing that. It's literally so pointless and I just needed to write it (mostly for myself because I am a baby fic hoe). Spoilers for 5x04!

It seems so strange- to see new life, out here in space; in the future.

But they all watch as the infant squirms, limbs flailing in the plastic incubator- after a moment, though, the child’s face scrunches up, and cries begin to issue from its tiny mouth. All three of them pause, and it takes only a moment for Melinda to assess that Deke knows absolutely nothing about children, and that Phil is too stunned to properly react.

In a swift motion, she had the lid up and off, and she carefully lifted the infant up and into her arms. It had been a long time since she’d held a baby, but after only a moment, she had the little boy situated inside her jacket, pressed against the cleaner cloth of her shirt. Cries turned to whimpers as the baby snuffled against her collarbone, wiggling against her until he settled, nestling into her body heat.

“You shouldn’t be doing that,” Deke says, voice tinged with worry as he glanced towards the door, and May shot him a glare.

“He was crying. He’s probably never been held. Even infants made in test tubes deserve human contact,” she snaps, cradling the child a little closer, and Deke lifts his hands in surrender, stepping back and giving her space.

Melinda could feel Phil’s eyes on her, the weight of them heavy, but all she can focus on is the warm weight in her arms, the flutter-fast heartbeat against hers, the soft breaths against her neck.

Over time, she’d learned to push her desire to be a mother down- had soothed the ache with her found family. But here and now, holding a baby in her arms- it welled up inside her, sharp-edged and hot, pressing against all the empty spaces inside of her.

Phil watched Melinda with the infant, soothing him as he cried, his chest aching. She had the biggest heart he’d ever seen- he’d known since the day they’d met how much love she had to give the world. Bahrain had shut it off, but recently, he’d seen her opening herself- and her heart- back up.

For a moment, he allows himself to drift into a daydream; one where they aren’t in the future, or space, and the infant in Melinda’s arms is their own child. Something sharp spikes in his heart, and Phil swallows hard, unable to tear his eyes away as Melinda runs her hand lightly over the infant’s head, swaying gently as the baby’s large eyes blinked shut slowly.

The urge to simply _tell her_ how he feels wells up inside him once more, and the words are on the tip of his tongue- she looks up at him, and her brown eyes are molten brown, as warm as a summer day. Melinda gives him the smallest smile, genuine and pure, and beckons him closer with a soft jerk of her head.

Phil moves closer, hand falling to the small of her back as she adjusted herself so he could see the baby’s face, rosebud lips parted as he slept.

“We have to save them,” she whispers, before she swallows. “We have to save- this.”

Phil lifts a hand to her cheek, brushing his thumb over her skin. “We will, Melinda.”

She looks up at him, eyes searching his face for a long moment before she nods, dropping her gaze to the sleeping infant in her arms.

“Not to break up the happy family moment over there, but we’re about to have company,” Deke informs them, and Melinda carefully places the baby back in the bassinet, stroking her fingers over the crown of his head before she secures the lid back in place.

Phil’s fingers catch hers before she lets them drop to her side, and he squeezes her hand. She looks up, curious, and Phil gives her a small smile.

“You look good like that,” he tells her, and the smile she gives back is equally small, and a little bit sad.

“You would too,” she replies, and regret extends between them like a tangible string for a moment before Deke makes a noise.

“Listen, I get that on your Earth you can still make babies the old fashioned way, but you two really don’t have time for that right now. Save it for your own timeline,” he says, and both their mouths open to protest- but the door opens to reveal a Kree, and they’re otherwise occupied.

A conversation for another time- or timeline, apparently.


End file.
